30 Day Push-Up Challenge: Get A Beefier And Fuller Chest

What’s a better way to push yourself out of your comfort zone than a push-up challenge? It’s in the freaking name.

There’s something beautiful about getting in the push-up stance, putting your chest to the ground, and grunting to get the extra energy to go up and down again.

The push-up is old-school. It’s gritty. And it works like a masterpiece to use all of your body weight to get stronger.

You don’t need any machines, free weights, or a trainer. It’s just the ground and your body in rhythm.

Plus, you don’t need any special skills. All the push-up requires from you is consistent hard work—and there’s something to be appreciated about that.

Can you feel my love for this exercise? I want you to feel the same way about push-ups and to join me in this 30 Day Push-Up Challenge.

Push-Ups Are The Perfect Exercise

I dig push-ups. Their unique ability to transform an entire body and core makes them the perfect exercise in my book.

So what are the specific qualities of doing push-ups? Here you go:

Build a fuller chest – What do you do when you first meet someone? After looking at their eyes or teeth, you next consciously or subconsciously scope out their chest (for both guys and girls). Since your chest is front and center below your face, doing push-ups will build a chest that gives off an immediate good impression of you.

Get defined arms – The wider your hands are in push-up stance, the more you’re working out your chest. The closer your hands are, the more you’re working out your triceps. Anyway you do it, the push-up breaks down and then grows your tricep muscles. Stick with push-ups, and you guys will have triceps busting out of your shirt. And you girls will have defined arms in a dress or sleeveless top.

Create chiseled abs – Maybe surprising to you, the push-up requires hardcore abdominal activation. When gravity is pushing down on your hips and your core during this exercise, your abs are getting much stronger compared to some other weak abs exercise. Got a six-pack on your mind? Start doing more push-ups to get there quicker. (And eat for energy.)

Grow boulder shoulders – Each time you do a push-up, you work out your deltoids—the rounded muscles over your shoulders. That’s why someone who regularly does push-ups is over time going to grow boulder shoulders. It’s a healthy, sexy look in my opinion.

Accessible anywhere – Besides the muscular toning, my favorite quality of the push-up is you can do it anywhere. Literally anywhere! At the office, on the beach, and everywhere on Earth that has gravity and a floor is open to get your push-ups in. This accessibility is the most important when traveling. It’s hard to find a gym on the road, so utilize the push-up to build your chest, core, and shoulders.

Less injury risk than bench press – A push-up is a natural exercise for the body. With proper form, there’s essentially no injury risk. However, bench press puts a heavy strain on the shoulders and pectoral. That’s why there’s a term named bench-presser’s shoulders. And if you seriously overdo bench press (doing way more weight than your body can handle), you could tear your pectoral. Push-ups don’t have the same injury risk.

Raise your metabolism – Push-ups are a quick, easy way to put your body into burn fat mode and boost your metabolism. Feeling lazy on the couch while watching a commercial you’d rather not? Get on the floor and give yourself 20 push-ups. Make a deal with yourself (temptation bundling) to do this during each commercial and you just did a solid workout in your family room.

Feel good – Exerting your body strength is going to release endorphins in your brain. These endorphins will improve your mood and energy for the rest of your day. When you don’t have time to go to the gym on a busy day, you can avoid feeling guilty by spending 10 minutes doing push-ups.

30 Day Push-Up Challenge Rules

Every legitimate challenge needs rules. Otherwise it’s “everything goes” and the challenge breaks down before it has a chance to get started.

So here are the official rules for this push-up challenge.

1. Start day one doing as many clean push-ups as you reasonably can in one set. For me, I’m going to do start with 40 push-ups. Could I do more? Yes, but my form would start to deteriorate and that’s not the goal. As you’ll see in the section below, it’s all about good form.

2. Add one push-up for each day going forward. For me, this looks like: Day 1 – 40 push-ups, Day 2 – 41 push-ups, Day 3 – 42 push-ups, and so on.

(If you find yourself in the middle of the challenge not being able to do your push-up number in one set, feel free to do it in two sets. The goal is that you keep getting stronger so one day you can do all your push-ups in one set.)

3. Take every fourth day off. Your muscles need rest to properly repair and perform at their best. So this schedule means you would do three days of push-ups, rest, then three days of push-ups, rest and so on.

For example, I’m starting at 40 push-ups on Day 1 so my 30-day schedule looks like this:

What’s Proper Push-Up Form?

From gym class to middle school sports, I’m sure you’ve done push-ups before. But you probably got away with weak form and continued to use that same form going forward.

The problem with not doing a clean push-up is you won’t get all the muscle benefits and you can risk an injury.

Place your hands on the ground slightly outside your shoulders, on the same horizontal plane as your chest.

Keep your body in a straight line at all times, including your head, torso, hips, butt, and feet.

Look slightly forward, not at the ground or your chin tucked in touching your chest.

Lock your arms out at the top, and bend them at a 45 degree angle when you’re an inch from the ground.

Tighten your abs and your butt as you do your push-ups.

Go at a steady pace, not too fast or too slow.

If you can’t do a regular push-up, do all the steps above except have your knees on the ground as you do them. This will be good strength training until you’re ready to do a regular push-up.

That’s all there is to a perfect push-up. See? Not so bad.

Let’s Go!

You could wait until the New Year to take your fitness serious. But who says that you’re not going to make another excuse then to push off getting in better shape?

So start this challenge now, today. Do as many clean push-ups as you can. And start building positive momentum.

Once you get over the hardest hurdle of beginning, you’re going to enjoy get stronger. You’re going to love filling out your clothes better. And you’re going to appreciate gaining confidence in how you look.

These benefits all come from getting in a push-up stance and getting after it. Let’s go!

Related: Other Brian’s Challenges on waking up early, eliminating sugar, being positive, reading, and more.

That’s all it takes to build your core and get stronger muscles. Isn’t the plank simple?

Plus you can plank daily to challenge your abs, where it’s not smart to do chest, biceps, or leg exercises daily. This is another W for the plank!

How often do you plank?

What’s your experience with it?

For how long can you plank without putting your butt in the air and arching your back?

Challenge yourself to start doing this weekly (it doesn’t have to be daily). Note how long you last, with good form, the first time you plank. Then take baby steps to feel the burn and go longer next time. And repeat this process.

Imagine how much progress you can make in 6, 12, and 18 months?

It’s for this reason that you better believe I’m planking tonight. Join me!

Interview: Dr. Littleton, “America’s Energy Doctor” Seen On Dr. Oz

Today I have a special interview for you with a great new friend, Dr. Jason Littleton.

He’s a doctor, CEO, author, speaker, columnist, and so much more. Mainly he’s known as “America’s Energy Doctor,” and has been on The Dr. Oz Show—that’s big time.

What I appreciate about Dr. Littleton is he’s one of those guys who benefits everyone around him, making it look effortless. All you have to do is listen, and you’re going to walk away with some new wisdom or inspiration.

You’ll see what I mean in this interview.

Check it out below, and don’t forget to keep reading after the interview to see my key insights.

——

Brian: You’re super successful now. But it wasn’t always easy. Tell us about your difficult trial during the MCAT and how you got through it to become Dr. Littleton.

Dr. Jason: In a nutshell, I was on a journey to become a doctor. And one of the roadblocks that came up was when I walked out of the MCAT exam.

One of the things I realized is that when you’re going for anything, you’re going to realize what you do and don’t know about yourself that you need to change. You do this so you can become a better version of yourself.

In my case, studying for the MCAT was a whole lot different from studying in high school. In high school, you read a textbook and remember what you need for the test. Even in college, you’re learning things and you mainly memorize information to get to the next level.

But for the MCAT, there’s information there that you have to not just memorize, but retain for your future success as a medical student and as a physician.

One of the things I learned about myself is that I needed to retrain how I learned information. I needed to retrain how I studied and how I focused, so I could be better prepared when I went into that next MCAT exam.

Here’s the deal when you take a big exam like that. Sometimes there’s pressure to succeed. And I didn’t fully understand that pressure as well as I maybe should have understood.

So through self-reflection, understanding the things I did wrong, and staying motivated, I was able to go back and do the test again, and succeed. That was a difficult time that I overcame. But I never lost focus that I would be a successful doctor.

Brian: What are your overall thoughts on failure? Is failure permanent?

Dr. Jason: It’s both. Failure is a temporary thing for people who see the light at the end of the tunnel, when there’s no light. You have to have a vision for yourself. You have to be able to see it when no one else can see it. And when things in the natural don’t look like they’re going well, you still have to have a mental picture of where you’re going and that you can still get there.

For people who can do that, and everyone can do that, so for those willing to do that then failure is temporary.

For people who are not willing to see the greatness inside of them and are not willing to face difficult times and get through them, failure is permanent. Because these are the types of people who will quit, not continue on, not fight the obstacles, or embarrassment. Because sometimes people feel embarrassed when they fail.

So if you can get past the pride and the embarrassment, to see that mental picture of you on the other side, failure is temporary.

Brian: I know that you’re an energy expert. So what are three changes we can make in our lives to gain more energy throughout the day?

Dr. Jason: First, you should always start with breakfast. A lot of people skip that, but here’s the deal: Carbs are our fuel. That’s like our gasoline. So when we eat breakfast, we’re getting the carbs we need to fill our body with energy.

People shouldn’t ever avoid carbs. That’s like not putting gas in your car. You want to have elite carbs though, such as vegetables and fruit.

The other thing people should do is have snacks throughout the day. I always tell people to have six meals a day—breakfast, lunch, and dinner with three snacks in between. When you do that, you stay energized as you go through the day.

Next thing, people should avoid drinking caffeinated drinks. Sometimes people make a habit out of that and they use caffeinated drinks for energy. But they continue that until it’s something they rely on to feel energized.

But that’s not what you need. It hurts your health. It doesn’t make you feel as energized as you actually think. It’s a lot of commercialism.

So those three things, just from a natural aspect of diet and nutrition, will give you more energy.

And here’s one bonus from a mental perspective. People have to plan to go beyond where they think their end point is. For example, if people think at 5 PM their day ends because they got off work and they’re not prepared to go beyond that, their internal mental clock says we’re done working and let’s shut it down.

But I tell people to keep the throttle going. Don’t go home at 5, sit on the couch, and turn things off. Because when you do that, you get tired, it’s hard to start again, it’s hard to work at home, and it’s hard to be an entrepreneur outside of your job.

So I tell people to plan to work to at least 10 PM. When you do that, mentally you’re prepared to go longer than you originally thought was your end point. That’s how you can also have more energy and spring to your step during the day.

Brian: From your experience as a doctor, what’s one of the biggest misconceptions an average person has about living a healthy life?

Dr. Jason: I don’t want to lose anyone here, but sometimes people think that they have to work out to an extreme extent so that they feel like they’re in the best shape of their lives.

But I argue that how many football players and athletes live beyond 70? These are people who work out to an extreme extent to become real muscle-bound. And sometimes that extreme working out causes added stress on the body and inflammation that actually doesn’t cause us to have longevity.

Some of people who have been interviewed who lived to their 100s said the secret to longevity is moderation in exercise and diet. Some of the extremes in terms of fitness won’t take you to longevity.

I’m not saying don’t lift weights, don’t go running, don’t work out. I’m saying do it in moderation, don’t do it to an extreme.

Sometimes people will do it to an extent where they don’t feel good about themselves until they’re beating their body to the extreme. When you do that, it damages your health.

Brian: Walk us through how you got featured on Dr. Oz and what that experience was like on national TV?

Dr. Jason: First of all, I have a business coach, Dr. Stacia Pierce, who is world-renowned business coach who has helped me get engaged with people like a Dr. Oz and a Dr. Nandi.

Having a coach is paramount because you need someone, as an entrepreneur, that will push you beyond what you think you can do. I wouldn’t be where I am without my coach.

And one day I received an email from the social producer from The Dr. Oz Show, asking me to talk about Dr. Oz’s magnesium grocery list and how I used it with my patients.

Of course I accepted that opportunity.

Brian: What’s your favorite book, fiction or nonfiction, and why?

Dr. Jason: One of my all time favorite books is Your Best Life Now by Pastor Joel Osteen. It’s a great book about making positive affirmations, believing in the favor of God, and really walking your faith out to be your best.

I think it’s a great book because when I read that it helped me through my journey of success as a physician.

There’s another book that’s really dear to my heart. It’s by Dr. James Pierce and it’s called TheSuccess Secrets of Excellence. And it’s about how to be excellent in life, in your job, in your business, being on time for appointments, and how you look excellent because people treat you how you look.

Those two books, and my business coach Stacia Pierce, have made me the person I am today.

Brian: What’s your life mission?

Dr. Jason: My life mission is to help people find their passion and to use that so that they can live as healthy as possible, so that they can buy more time on this earth, and so they can carry it out.

Helping people do that enriches the world. Helping people live longer and be energized to do what they’re passionate about is a huge part of my purpose.

Brian: Where can Take Your Success readers go to learn more about you and your work?

Dr. Jason: People can go to my website: www.jasonmd.com. There they can find links to my Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter profiles.

And on my website they’ll be able to get to every social media site, book, and resource that I have.

——

What I learned is that Dr. Littleton has a clear vision for the world, his patients, and his life. That’s to live with passion.

And his passion empowers him to do his best work, regardless of the arena.

His passion to be a doctor carried him through his difficult time with the MCAT. His passion to help others live with energy improves the lives of his patients and the people around them. And his passion for entrepreneurship pushes him to continual business success.

I’m totally with him. There’s a 180 degree difference between someone who is pursuing their passion and someone who isn’t. You can see it in their day-to-day life, their mood, and often their eyes.

So I, and I know Dr. Littleton agrees, challenge you to find your passion. It’s the best thing for the people around you and you.